Star-struck NIKKI BARR checks out the California coastline where icons from Hollywood's Golden Age created a playground for the rich and famous

STANDING on the beach at Crystal Cove admiring the cool Pacific Ocean lapping at California's shoreline, it's not hard to imagine the rich and famous of past eras favouring Newport Beach as the perfect destination for a second home. Stars of the Golden Age of Hollywood flocked to the seaside town to party thanks to its proximity to Los Angeles and, where the stars flocked, the rich but not-so-famous quickly followed.

Gazing up at the cedar wood beach cottages dotted along the shoreline, there's an overwhelming sense of nostalgia, with their peeling, pastel paintwork echoing Hollywood's faded glamour. "That's the house where Bette Midler and Barbara Hershey stayed in the movie Beaches, " our guide tells us as I bury my toes in the w arm sand and gaze down the beach at the familiar w ooden home with its ageing porch and French doors.

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Newport Beach, 50 miles down the coast from LA, has been a magnet for film stars, most notably John Wayne and Shirley Temple, since Hollywood chose Orange County as the setting for many silent films during the early 1900s. Buster Keaton's classics The Boat and The Navigator were both filmed here, as well as 1930 movie All Quiet On The Western Front.

As part of our coastal whistlestop tour, we hop in an electric Duffy boat at Newport Beach Harbor and take a sneaky tour of the backyards of the rich and famous, normally locked away from the public eye in the gated communities.

The harbour is still home to Wayne's 135-foot boat, Wild Goose, which was often used to host parties for his famous pals and is now the perfect setting for John Wayne-inspired shindigs.

The actor's house, still owned by his family, stands out immediately further down the harbour's edge because of its elaborate Mediterranean architecture and the sheer scale of the property, a rarity considering the astronomical price of land in the area.

Right next door is Nicolas Cage's former residence, which he notoriously purchased just to say he was the Western star's neighbour.

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The cream building looks a little modern for the area with massive glass panels lining the back wall and its own boat dock.

As we return the boat to Balboa Island, a small peninsula in Newport Bay, I'm greeted by the sweet smell of waffles and popcorn, while the faint sound of fairground music plays from one of the stalls nearby.

By the side of the harbour is a Ferris wheel and a carousel which look as vintage as some of the signs that hang from the waterfront shops. Pastel-coloured miniature buildings covered in plaques dedicated to Forties stars line the narrow, pristine streets, while the beachfront resonates with the sound of seagulls and crashing waves.

The clothing boutiques and my casual T-shirt and jeans are the only indicators that we're no longer in the Fifties or Sixties.

"The upstairs ballroom was always busy during the Big Band era, " our guide tells us as we arrive at Balboa Pavilion, Newport's oldest building, which was erected back in 1906. The wide, wooden structure with its white pillars and old bell tower sits right on the harbour front and is a focal point at the end of Balboa's Main Street.

Jazz icons such as Count Basie and Benny Goodman performed frequently in the ballroom, which takes up the entire top level of the building and has wooden floors and low ceilings. Other stars, including Frank Sinatra, spent their nights in the downstairs bar (now the Harborside Restaurant) playing endless games of poker.

Sinatra's own home was a mere two-hour drive away in Hollywood's other playground, Palm Springs, where he wined and dined with fellow Rat-Packers Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr.

Earlier in the week, we visited the desert resort where regular visitors include Clint Eastwood, John Travolta, Ron Howard and Halle Berry, attracted no doubt by the huge mansions, pristine palm-lined streets and reliably hot weather which delivers 355 days of sunshine a year.

Here by the coast, it's a little cooler thanks to the sea breeze.

After over-indulging on sweets and candyfloss, we head back to our hotel, The Resort at Pelican Hill, to chill out with a facial and watch the sun set over the beach from the pool bar.

Back in my room, I pull on my seamed stockings and dress for an evening of dancing. My mind drifts off to an era of vintage dresses, pin curls and late-night poker games. I can picture myself fitting in perfectly among the stars. As John Wayne might say: "That'll be the day."

GETTING THERE:
British Airways (0844 493 0758/ www.ba.com) offers a seven-night fly-drive package from £704pp.

Price includes return flights from London to Los Angeles and seven days Avis car hire.

The Resort at Pelican Hill (dialling from the UK: 001 800 315 8214/www.pelicanhill.com) offers doubles from £315 per night (two sharing), room only.

Hyatt Grand Champions Resort Villas & Spa (0845 888 1234/www.grandchampions.hyatt.com) offers doubles from £114 per night (two sharing), room only.

Visit Newport Beach Inc: 0845 519 2781/www.visitnewportbeach.com Palm Springs Desert Resorts

CVA: (as above)/www.palmspringsusa.com